Qualifying For A Viatical Settlement
If you own at least $50,000 of life insurance coverage and have been diagnosed with a serious or life-threatening illness, you may qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan.
Determining whether you qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan is based on a few basic factors, namely, your health history, policy type and future premium costs. Here are a few simple guidelines to help you find out if you qualify for a viatical settlement:
You have been diagnosed with a serious, life-threatening or other terminal illness.
In order to qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan, you must have been diagnosed with a serious, life-threatening or other terminal illness. Examples of qualifying medical conditions include: late-stage cancer (Stage III or IV), advanced-stage dementia, ALS, congestive heart failure, late-stage liver disease, renal failure, and advanced COPD.
If you do not have a serious or terminal illness and are over the age of 70, you may nonetheless qualify for one of our life settlement programs for seniors. To learn more about these programs, please visit our companion website.
The face amount of your policy should be at least $50,000.
To qualify, your policy must have a current death benefit of at least $50,000.
Your policy type must be eligible.
Most life insurance policy types are eligible for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan, including, Universal Life, Whole Life, Flexible Premium Adjustable Life, Group Life, Indexed Life, as well as governmental benefit policies issued by FEGLI, VGLI and SGLI. Term Life policies usually qualify for a viatical settlement as long as there is sufficient time left on the term, or the policy is convertible to a permanent life insurance policy.
“Throughout the whole process, BRAVEPORT kept me well informed, promptly responded to my emails, calls, and inquiries, and kept me well apprised.”
Another Client Success Story
BRAVEPORT got James $37,000 for his expiring term life policy.
James was the 70 year old owner of a expiring $350,000 term life policy. He explored the idea of converting it to a permanent policy to extend coverage, but learned the premiums would cost more than 5 times what he’d been paying. Instead of surrendering the coverage back to the insurance company for zero value, James contacted BRAVEPORT to find out if he would qualify for a life settlement. After analyzing the policy and converting it to permanent coverage, we were able to get James an immediate cash payout of $37,000 for a policy he could not afford to continue. James was delighted with the result since he would have received nothing had he surrendered the policy to the insurance company.
Frequently Asked Questions
Read common questions and answers about whether you and your policy qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan.
Do I qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan?
Individuals diagnosed with advanced-stage cancer or another serious illness with life insurance of more than $50,000 in face value will generally qualify for our viatical settlement and life insurance loan programs. If you haven’t been diagnosed with a serious illness, but are over 70, you may still qualify for one of our life settlement programs for seniors. Learn more about our life settlement programs here.
What types of policies are eligible for viatical settlements and life insurance loans?
Universal Life, Whole Life, Variable Universal Life, Term and Convertible Term Life policies issued by U.S. based insurance companies. Joint, second-to-die policies, group policies and those issued by FEGLI, VGLI and SGLI are typically eligible as well.
How much should the policy’s face value be?
Generally, a policy with a face value of $50,000 or higher is eligible for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan.
Is a health exam required?
No. Unlike when you purchased your life insurance coverage, a health exam isn’t required for you to qualify for a viatical settlement or life insurance loan. Medical underwriting decisions are based on an independent review of the medical records we will obtain from your health care providers.
Is a credit check required for a life insurance loan?
No. There will never be any credit checks for the life insurance loan. Since the only collateral for the loan is the insurance policy, your individual credit worthiness doesn’t matter.
I don't have a serious illness. Do I have any options?
If you haven’t been diagnosed with a serious illness, but are over 70, you may qualify for one of our life settlement programs for seniors. Learn more about our life settlement programs here.
Do you still have questions?
Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for a comprehensive list of questions and answers about viatical settlements and life insurance loan. Or, feel free to contact us anytime for a free policy review to find out if you qualify.
